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Dear Editor:
As a Westfield solar owner, I know first-hand about the benefits of rooftop solar. In addition to lowering my monthly energy bill, my system benefits all Hoosiers by producing clean electricity close to where it’s needed. Ensuring more neighbors can go solar also means more home-grown, Hoosier-made energy in our future electric system.
Currently, a legislative study committee called the 21st Century Energy Policy Development Task Force is meeting to discuss the policies that will shape that future electric system. State Senator Scott Baldwin, who represents me, is one of the legislators on the Task Force.
Net metering is one topic being considered by the Task Force. Net metering is a fair and simple way to credit solar owners for the electricity they generate. It provides a bill credit to solar owners for the solar energy they produce, but don’t use themselves, at the same rate that all consumers pay utilities for energy used from the grid – an even swap.
Many Hoosiers have already lost access to net metering, and new solar customers served by Duke Energy will lose it under current law if they install their system after June 30, 2022. The replacement proposed by Duke Energy and other utilities would drive Indiana off the solar cliff – meaning Hoosiers lose out on the benefits of adding more rooftop solar to the grid.
In the last Indiana legislative session, there were three bills introduced to extend net metering, including one introduced by my state representative, Rep. Tony Cook. However, none of these bills received a fair hearing.
The General Assembly must act next year to prevent Indiana from falling off the solar cliff in 2022. Hoosiers deserve fair credit for electricity they generate on their own homes and businesses. That’s why the Task Force should recommend preserving the traditional monthly billing cycle netting and a fair rate for electricity sent to the grid.
I hope Sen. Baldwin, Rep. Cook, and their colleagues around Hamilton County lead our state in the right direction by supporting rooftop solar!
Jodi Becker
Westfield